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England's 'in awe of the physicality they brought' Springboks verdict
Kevin Sinfield has warned England not to be too fixated on the threat posed by star Springboks players in next Saturday’s Rugby World Cup semi-final.
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Having travelled by train on Monday from Marseille following their quarter-final win over Fiji, Steve Borthwick’s team got down to work on the training ground in the French capital ahead of a last-four clash featuring the two teams that contested the 2019 World Cup final in Yokohama.
South Africa were 32-12 winners that November day four years ago and with them now coming into this rematch with England on the back of last Sunday’s defeat of the host nation France, there is a lot of hype about the enormous challenge they will pose the English.
Cheslin Kolbe, for instance, was one of their star performers at Stade de France but asked about the danger of the South African winger, Sinfield cautioned that England instead needed to focus on the opposition as a collective.
“The back three, whoever they pick, have got some real gas and pace,” he said on Tuesday evening after England wrapped up their first day of training ahead of the semi-final.
“For us this week it is important to get the balance right between understanding what South Africa do, how they play but also some of our strengths as well.
“It would be quite easy for us to be completely blown away by how good they are so there will be some individuals we will prepare for. We won’t be sharing that with you guys [the media].
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“They are a very well-drilled outfit and if we spend a lot of time focusing in on one player, someone else will burn us and get us so we understand they are a very good unit and we need to be defensively too.”
England head into the semi-finals with the best tackle success rate of all four teams – 86 per cent – but defence coach Sinfield reckoned this will need to be better if they are to dethrone the reigning champion. “I didn’t know that stat, I’d like it to be higher. I want us to keep improving,” he said.
“If we are going get near South Africa at the weekend that number needs to be massively increased I would suggest. The last couple of weeks we faced two teams that wanted to throw the ball about.
“We knew Fiji would have a purple patch where they would cause us problems. We prepared for a spell where we would be under the cosh, and in the end although it got very tense towards those last few minutes.
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“It was probably another challenge for this group to have to face to have a big lead and then have it chopped down and to be able to find a way to win.
“We are coming up against a team that has probably got the best defence in the world at the minute. South Africa have been together a long time, they are really well drilled. It’s an aggressive defence and we look forward to coming up against them at the weekend.”
NO LONGER UNDER THE RADAR: The media pack following England ramped up on Tuesday, with vision access in Paris featuring a football match in which Steve Borthwick even had a kick. #ENGvRSA #RWC2023 #EnglandRugby pic.twitter.com/HnGhqcHM4H
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 17, 2023
Another stat – that South Africa have kicked the ball away the least compared to their style in the last World Cup; just 21.6 kicks per game and just 51 per cent of possession kicked away – was also put to Sinfield. “They have added to the game,” he suggested.
“When you look at the line-up and some of the stars; I have been fortunate to work with a couple of them back at Leicester. You look across that backline and they can hurt you in a whole host of ways.
“They are a run threat, they are a kick threat, they have got an incredible set-piece, they have got unbelievable defence, do you want me to keep going? We know what we’re up against this week but really excited by the challenge.
“They are a top team. We saw the game on Sunday evening, we are in awe of the physicality that they brought. France certainly turned up too and it was a great showcase for what rugby is about.
“We knew whoever we met at this point it would be a tough challenge with the draw, it was either the hosts or the current holders and we have the utmost respect for them.
“They are a nation that plays the best rugby and plays some great rugby and they know what they are about and they don’t shy away from it and we look forward to the test.”
England had a number of players – including Marcus Smith – only doing modified training on Tuesday, a situation that didn’t worry Sinfield.
“We had a couple of unmodified warm-ups today but we are very hopeful we will have all 33 available. He [Smith] is good. He is one of those who have been modified, so we will get a clearer view later in the week so fingers crossed he will be good to go.
“It’s normal. It’s the first day we have run since the game (versus Fiji). Some of them are the best footballers, so it was best that they stayed out of the session at the start. Some are a bit older as well so we have to be a bit smarter to get them ready to train, but it’s normal for us.”
- Click here for the complete statistical review of the four Rugby World Cup semi-final teams
Comments on RugbyPass
Best team ever…. To have played? These guys are still pressure chokers. Came nowhere when it counted. What a joke
68 Go to commentsMusk defends anonymous terrorism, fascism, threats against individuals and children etc etc But a Rugby club account….lock ‘em up!!!
1 Go to commentsActually the era defining moment came a few years earlier. February 2002 to be precise, when Michael D Higgins as finance minister at the time introduced his sports persons tax relief bill to the dial. As the politicians of the day stated “It seems to be another daft K Club frolic born in Kildare amongst the well-paid professional jockeys with whom the Minister plays golf” and that the scheme represented “a savage uncaring vision of Ireland and one that should be condemned”. The irfu and Leinster would be nowhere near the position they are in today without this key component of the finances.
2 Go to commentsIt is crystal clear that people who make such threats on line should be tried and imprisoned. Those with responsibility in social media companies who don’t facilitate this should be convicted. In real life, I have free speech to approach someone like Reinach and verbally threaten him. I am risking a conviction or a slap but I could do it. In the old days, If someone anonymously threatened someone by letter the police would ask and use evidence from the postal system. Unlike the Post, social media companies have complete instant and legal access to the content in social media. They make money from the data, billions. Yet, they turn a blind eye to terrorism, Nazi-ism and industrial levels of threats against individuals including their address and childrens schools being published online all from ananoymous accounts not real speech. They claim free speech. The fault is with the perps but also social media companies who think anonymous personas posting death threats constitutes free speech.
2 Go to commentsSo if this ain’t the best Irish team ever then who exactly is? I don’t remember any other Irish team being this good & winning a series in the Land of the Long White Cloud. Yes I may rip them often for 8 X QF RWC exits & twice not even making it to the QF, but they’re a damn good team who many think can only improve, including me!
68 Go to commentsNot a squeek out of Leinster for weeks about this match. So quiet. The first team have been quitely building for this encounter under Nienaber’s direction. All fresh, all highly motivated. They are expecting a season’s best performance from Northhampton. They will match that. They will be fresher and apparently they will have 80,000 out of the 83,000 shouting for them. I do expect Northhampton to turn up big time. Not to be missed. On a tangent it is evident how the loss of a few Premiership teams has in some respect helped other Premiership teams and England. More quality over less teams makes the teams better, which has a knock on effect on England. Not the only factor contributing to England’s rise but one of them.
2 Go to commentsOur very own monster teddy bear Ox😍💪
17 Go to commentsThis is might be the most generalised, entitled, patronising, out-of-pocket cultural indictment on a group of people you’ll ever see on what is supposedly a sports publication. I can only assume the author is weak like a woman or homosexual. I’m feeling an incredible range of emotions but I am not quite sure how to express them. I might go beat up a hockey player - assuming that’s okay with Duane and the boys? 🙂
9 Go to commentsBest thing the Welsh clubs could do is apply to join Gallagher prem surely be more exciting matches for there support than they have now.
2 Go to commentsRugbyPass writers are useless! you guys should get a real job because you all suck at writing about rugby!!!
9 Go to commentslooking forward to RWC2027 …. Boks on mission impossible for the Three-in-a-row, ABs to prove they being on par, France wishing to crown the “DuPont-era”, Ireland knocking on the Semi-Door ….. until then we’ll probably have to deal with Weird Ben’s fantasy-RWC23 (fun fact is, the drivel always creates a flooding of comments) …..
221 Go to commentsBen Smith you really make some good points in this article, the Springboks were not close to perfect and good still beat the All Blacks, imagine if they were as good as they were against France what a hiding the All Blacks would have gotten… maybe another Twickenham drubbing
221 Go to commentsIt is a good argument to keep the Rebels for one more year but also isnt this just opening the door as well for keeping them beyond 2025. If they can create some sort of financial stability in the next year and if their performances lift as they have this season then how would RA even cull them after that? It might be the most cost effective decision at this stage and perhaps many people are guilty of keeping relationships going because of the cost to decouple but then again when does that ever work out well?
28 Go to commentsDear Ben Smith you are a genius! God please become the next all blacks coach that can take on the mighty BOKS. Your rugby acumen is second to none - imagine your dads sperm bounced as unfortunately as that oval ball did….we would not be blessed with your presence. Just as the all blacks were missing a man you too are missing a chromosome for 80% of your life, so your insights are not only profound but ring true from your own experiences. Just as the TMO interfered with citing an illegal pass I am sure your local authorities interfere with your illegal passes you make on women - How dare they!!! God forbid that rugby be officiated fairly. You are the right man for the job. Next all blacks coach is here ladies and gentlemen Miss Ben Smith (He/She/They/IT)
221 Go to commentsHuge engine this guy and great to see him back ..The amount of clean outs he does at the ruck are ridiculous !!
3 Go to commentsThe level of desperation in this article is just embarrassing.
221 Go to commentsSome silly trolling in the comments.
9 Go to commentsEverywhere you turn some irish journo is advocating Ireland as the greatest, reasoning that the wc is a 4 year cycle event so, they say wc doesn’t matter it’s the rugby in between that should account for the accolade. If there was no wc then some substance could be gained, however in my opinion the moment that defined Ireland’s fate against the abs was 37 phases of repeated head bashing against a brick wall. If a change in strategy or a tinker with the game plan was executed then things could've been vastly different. And to point a finger the let down was in the hands of the number 10.
68 Go to commentsI have heard it asked if RA is essentially one of the part owners and I suppose therefor should be on the other side of these two parties. If they purchased the rebels and guaranteed them, and are responsible enough they incur Rebels penalties, where is this line drawn? Seems rough to have to pay a penalty for something were your involvement sees you on the side of the conned party, the creditors. If the Rebels directors themselves have given the club their money, 6mil worth right, why aren’t they also listed as sitting with RA and the Tax office? And the legal threat was either way, new Rebels or defunct, I can’t see how RA assume the threat was less likely enough to warrant comment about it in this article. Surely RA ignore that and only worry about whether they can defend it or not, which they have reported as being comfortable with. So in effect wouldn’t it be more accurate to say there is no further legal threat (or worry) in denying the deal. Unless the directors have reneged on that. > Returns of a Japanese team or even Argentinean side, the Jaguares, were said to be on the cards, as were the ideas of standing up brand new teams in Hawaii or even Los Angeles – crazy ideas that seemingly forgot the time zone issues often cited as a turn-off for viewers when the competition contained teams from South Africa. Those timezones are great for SR and are what will probably be needed to unlock its future (cant see it remaining without _atleast _help from Aus), day games here are night games on the West Coast of america, were potential viewers triple, win win. With one of the best and easiest ways to unlock that being to play games or a host a team there. Less good the further across Aus you get though. Jaguares wouldn’t be the same Jaguares, but I still would think it’s better having them than keeping the Rebels. The other options aren’t really realistic 25’ options, no. From reading this authors last article I think if the new board can get the investment they seem to be confident in, you keeping them simply for the amount of money they’ll be investing in the game. Then ditch them later if they’re not good enough without such a high budget. Use them to get Jaguares reintergration stronger, with more key players on board, and have success drive success.
28 Go to commentsYeah, and ours is waaay bigger than yours. Just as you's get a semi…oh hold on that never happens
68 Go to comments